BEOs not appointed to 49 new taluks in state

Hubballi: It has been two years since as many as 49 new taluks were carved out in Karnataka, but sadly, the state government is yet to appoint a dedicated block education officer (BEO) to these administrative units, much to the chagrin of the stakeholders in the sector.
Teachers in these newly-formed taluks have raised concerns about the lack of a BEO affecting academic activities such as the distribution of textbooks, conducting of examinations among others. On the other hand, parents are forced to travel to the nearest BEO office, which, unfortunately is not too near.
President of the Karnataka Government Rural Primary School Teachers’ Association, Hubballi Ashok Sajjan said that the oversight of the education department in nominating BEOs to the new taluks, and setting up an office had had a particularly adverse impact on schools in the villages. “We have submitted a memorandum seeking rectification of this oversight multiple times but we have received no response,” Sajjan told TOI.
Mallikarjun Uppin, also a teacher, said that the new taluks had not been mentioned in the order issued on Teachers’ Day for the selection of the best teacher in the district. “It almost seems as though the department of public instruction is unaware of the new taluks,” Uppin said.
In Ganjendragad in Gadag district, the headquarters of a newly-formed taluk, a teacher said that most of these new administrative units now had fully functioning panchayats, members to which had already been elected. “This is an indication that the state government, regardless of which party is in power, is only interested in elected bodies and not others. Consequently, we are forced to go all the way to Ron seeking resolution to administrative issues,” he said.
Hanumant, a youngster in Karatagi in Koppal district, who is looking for employment, said that they still had to visit the BEO office in Ron taluk for documents such as study certificates.
Although an office has been established for the BEO in Maski taluk in Raichur district, the role itself has been handed to the Sindhanur and Lingasugur officials, each of whom shoulder the additional responsibilities three days a week. “Administration is bound to suffer in such a scenario,” said a teacher.
Repeated attempts to contact primary and secondary education minister S Suresh Kumar via phone calls and messages yielded no result since he was unavailable for comment.